Discover the Best of Chicago

Heading to Chicago for a business conference soon? Chances are you will be soon. The team from ndp has already attended several conferences and expositions in the Windy City this year and a couple of more yet to come. Here are some little known facts about Chicago and at the end of this article a chance for you to download a unique Insider's Guide to the Best of Chicago.

CHICAGO IS HOME TO...

Over 5,195 restaurants

More than 250 theaters, 225 music venues and 200 dance companies

56 museums

Over 700 public art works

26 miles of lakefront with an 18.5-mile lakefront path

8,100 acres of green space with 580 parks and 26 beaches

Approximately 369 landmarks and 46 historic districts

119 hotels with 39,000+ hotel rooms in the Central Business District

FUN FACTS BEHIND TOP ATTRACTIONS

The "Historic Route 66" begins in Chicago at Grant Park on Adams Street in front of the Art Institute of Chicago.

McCormick Place, Chicago's premier convention center, offers the largest amount of exhibition space in North America (2.6 million square feet).

The first Ferris wheel made its debut in Chicago at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Today, Navy Pier is home to a 15-story Ferris wheel, modeled after the original one.

The Chicago Cultural Center is the first free municipal cultural center in the U.S. and home to the world's largest stained glass Tiffany dome.

The Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower) is the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere at 110 stories high.

The Willis Tower elevators are among the fastest in the world operating as fast as 1,600 feet per minute.

DID YOU KNOW?

Over 52 million people visit Chicago annually.

Chicago's nicknames include: The Windy City, City of Big Shoulders, The Second City, and The City That Works.

Chicago's downtown area is known as "The Loop." The nickname refers to the area encircled by the elevated (‘L') train tracks.

The Twinkie was invented during the Depression by Chicagoan Jimmy Dewar. The dessert was dubbed "Twinkie" after Dewar spotted an ad for Twinkle Toe Shoes. Originally filled with banana cream, but as they became scarce during WWII, vanilla cream was substituted.

Chicago has the largest collection of Impressionist paintings outside of Paris.

WANT YOUR OWN INSIDER INFO TO CHICAGO?

If you plan to be in Chicago for a business conference this year or next, the team at ndp put together an Insider's Guide to the best eats and sights according to locals. We spoke with Chicagoans who gave us their top picks of where to find the best BBQ, Chicago-style pizza, hot dogs and more. Want to know where to go for tacos when in Lincoln Park? We got you covered. Want to know what restaurant has the highest quality bar food? We got someone to vouch for that. Want to know what rooftop bar has the best views of the city and Millenium Park? We got a local recommendation for that.

As an EOE, ndp will provide equal employment opportunity to all qualified persons regardless of race, creed, color, gender, age, religion, national origin, marital status, disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, genetic information, political affiliation or any other classification protected by law. This policy applies to all areas of employment including but not limited to recruitment, promotion, training opportunities, wage/salary administration, benefits, or employment termination.

ndp is committed to complying fully with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and ensuring equal opportunity in all aspects of employment for qualified persons with disabilities. Reasonable accommodations will be made that will allow qualified job candidates and employees the capability of performing their essential job duties if those accommodations do not impose an undue hardship.

Let's do something great together.

We want to be difference makers. In the work we do, how we do it and whom we do it with.

Does that sound good to you? Then drop us a line.

ndp maintains a drug-free workplace and is an equal opportunity employer (EOE).